2010 November 04

Cheers from San Francisco!

I met up with some blogging buddies – Susan, Allie and Heather and we took a trip to Chinatown.

Here are some photos from our adventure:

We had to climb a giant hill before getting to Chinatown.

We were going to go to the Hang Ah Tea Room (the one I visited last time I was in San Fran – click to view that post), but it was closed.

We got a recommendation from a local to try to dim sum restaurant with the 3 red letters and 2 green letters – Good Mang Kok.

This place had a line out the door and was really popular with the locals. It was really authentic too…all the signs were in Chinese. Luckily, the woman taking my order understood English, so I was able to order what I wanted.

Going to this restaurant was so fun. I really felt immersed in Chinatown. This is def work a visit if you’re in the area.

We stopped by an Asian market before finding a place outside to enjoy our eats.

Shrimp and veggies dumpling.

Steamed pork bun.

Susan and I split this steamed rice in a lotus leaf.

A red bean paste dessert. I should have gotten the larger steamed one…this one was just ok. I prefer the one with the dough that is like the steamed pork bun.

PS I got all this food for only $3.50. Amazing!

Post lunch, we decided to head back to the hotel.

We passed a couple more interesting shops before heading home.

I thought this photo on the hill was sort of artsy.

Anywho, on to the next adventure!

{ 10 comments }

Hey guys!

So, I know not all of you are not going to Foodbuzz Festival, but a lot still are. Kath did such a lovely job with her photo tour on how to get to the Healthy Living Summit, I thought I’d take a stab at putting something together for the Foodbuzz Festival 2011.

Here are directions from the SFO airport to the Sir Francis Hotel where I think most of you are staying (or close by):

Look for signs to the AirTrain – it’s on the 3rd level once you get near the baggage area.

Take the escalator up.

Take the Blue Line to the BART Station.

Buy your ticket (it’s $8.10 for the Powell stop). Use the change machine if you have a $10 or $20.

Go to the BART station entrance and use your ticket to get in.

NOTE: Hold on to your ticket – you need it to exit the BART area once you get to Powell Street.

Look for the sign for Platforms 3&4. You want Platform 3.

You want to take the escalator down to platform 3.

Get the next train.

Enjoy the ride.

Take the Powell exit.

Take the escalator up.

Use your ticket to exit the BART area.

Follow the natural sunlight.

Take the escalator up.

You’re almost there!

You should now be at Powell and Market. Look for the spinning trolley.

Btw, you may want to get a multi-day trolley pass while you’re here. The 3-day pass is, I believe $20, and word on the street is that a one-way pass is $5. So if you’re going to use the trolley system (I think the pass is good for some other forms of public transportation, too), you may want to consider the multi-day. There are a few options, but this is the only place (that I know of) where you can get these multi-day tickets. Otherwise, you have to have cash to ride the trolley.

Now, you can take the trolley up Powell St or walk up. The trolley stops right in front of the hotel, but the walk isn’t bad. Just a few blocks uphill.